Olympic Gold Medal Marathoner to Speak at Inaugural Brooksie Way CEO Challenge Breakfast; News/Talk 760 WJR's Paul W. Smith to Broadcast Live 

WATERFORD, Mich. (Aug. 19, 2009) -- Joan Benoit Samuelson, the first-ever winner of a women’s Olympic marathon, is the guest speaker at the Friday, Aug. 21 kick-off breakfast for the CEO Challenge for the Brooksie Way Half Marathon and 5k races.

The event, which is hosted by Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson and is open to the media, runs from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. Friday at the Royal Park Hotel, 600 E. University, in Rochester. News/Talk 760 WJR morning radio host Paul W. Smith will broadcast his show live from the Royal Park. Benoit Samuelson won her gold medal in the 1984 Summer Olympic Games in Los Angeles, the first time the women’s marathon was run in the Olympic Games. Greg Meyer, a Michigan resident and the last American male to win the Boston Marathon, is also scheduled to attend Friday’s event as is 2008 U.S. Olympian Brian Sell of Rochester, who ran in the inaugural Brooksie Way in 2008.

Bruce Hill, president and CEO of HealthPlus of Michigan, Cathy Nash, president and CEO of Citizens Bank, and ArvinMeritor CEO Charles “Chip” McClure, have challenged other area CEOs in to pony up $1,000 to run either the half marathon or the 5k race. The Brooksie Way is set for Oct. 4.

The 13.1 mile race begins and ends at Oakland University and runs through Rochester and Rochester Hills. It includes parts of the Paint Creek and Clinton River trails. It is named in honor of Brooks Stuart Patterson, who died after a snowmobiling accident in 2007. Four thousand runners participated in the inaugural Brooksie Way in 2008.

The Crim Fitness Foundation, which is partnering with Oakland County to put on the Brooksie Way Half Marathon and 5k, has hosted the Crim Festival of Races in Flint for more than 30 years. The Crim’s signature 10-mile road race is set for Saturday morning in downtown Flint.

Proceeds from the Brooksie Way, including the CEO Challenge, are used to support health and fitness-related activities in Oakland and Genesee counties.

Contact: Steve Huber, Marketing & Communications Officer
Phone Number: 248-858-1848